Familiar tale at Bristol

Only 11.2 overs were bowled on the second day of the LV= County Championship match between Gloucestershire and Kent at Bristol before a torrential downpour left the outfield resembling a lake.

The visitors had progressed to 29 for one when the rain arrived at 11:45am, with umpires Neil Bainton and Martin Bodenham ruling out any further prospect of play at 1:15pm.

After a first-day washout, Gloucestershire won the toss and skipper Alex Gidman unsurprisingly elected to field as the grey clouds began to gather.

Play began on time in sunshine and Kent had 12 on the board when Sam Northeast was given a life on seven, Rob Nicol spilling a relatively straightforward chance at second slip.

The unlucky bowler was Will Gidman, back in the Gloucestershire XI after a side injury that had kept him out since June.

It was James Fuller who made the breakthrough from the Pavilion End as Rob Key, on nine, attempted to pull a short ball and got a thin edge through to wicketkeeper Jon Batty.

With nine runs added, the players were forced off as the heavens opened, after which Batty provided some entertainment for the scattering of spectators by emerging from Gloucestershire’s dressing room in only swimming trunks and goggles before taking a dip in some of the huge puddles that surrounded the square.

As Batty paddled and demonstrated his front crawl and backstroke techniques, team-mates took photographs from the dressing room balcony - no doubt seeking a snap to sum up the summer of 2012.